I did IBT several years ago and it really proved beneficial. Sleep quality was one of the marked improvements I remember and an overall feeling of being centered and grounded. I hope that this method gets the necessary recognition as there is definitely a good benefit from it.

I did IBT several years ago and it really proved beneficial. Sleep quality was one of the marked improvements I remember and an overall feeling of being centered and grounded. I hope that this method gets the necessary recognition as there is definitely a good benefit from it.

Thanks for letting us know about your experience using Inclined Therapy Barn, much appreciated.

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Science is continually evolving. Nothing is set in stone. Question everything and everyone. Always consider vested interests as a reason for miss-direction. But most of all explore and find answers that you are comfortable with

Andrew, I'm glad I found IBT but I have to be honest and admit that I have not been using it. Its partly laziness but also I feel like I've been getting the benefits in another way . Around the time that I discovered IBT I also found out how the modern toilet is one of the worst offenders to health known to man. In a way IBT led me to it while asking in what other ways that I'm not aware of am I misusing/abusing my body. This led me to look at diet/posture and then I stumbled on this site newbielink:http://www.naturesplatform.com/health_benefits.html [nonactive] that discusses how the proper way to eliminate is in the squat position and that we are not physically suited to sit while eliminating. Now it is also interesting to note that the platform that is sold on the site is not a flat platform but the creator has it inclined for people who can't stay balanced due to weight and atrophied leg muscles from lack of use (is there a link with IBT? Vericose Veins?). Also on this site there is a small reference to the modern toilet as contributing to vericose veins. newbielink:http://www.toilet-related-ailments.com/history-of-the-pedestal-toilet.html [nonactive].

I too have mentioned many times about the pressure from the good old toilet seat causing constriction on the vessels as the pelvis plus our weight presses down on the skin fat and muscle compressing the vascular network within. This is inevitably going to cause back pressure into the arteries.

A nurse told me that many stroke victims are found on the toilet, she put it down to the onset of a stroke giving an urge to defecate. I suspected that prolonged use of a toilet possibly due to constipation or even sitting on the loo reading a newspaper which is not uncommon could well have caused the rise in arterial BP that triggered the stroke.

The same principle applies or should I say must apply to the flesh and vessels on the soles and heels of our feet when we stand still for long periods. We have all observed the funny videos of the groom or bride standing motionless at a wedding collapsing without any prior warning.

Guards on duty face the same problem and have learned to shift weight by rocking from one foot to the other, this would of course induce a pumping action on the fluid filled tissue and assist circulation rather than standing motionless and compromising the circulation. Not rocket science either just good old common sense.

Turning over in bed while sleeping is certainly an automatic reflex to the constant pressure of sleeping in one position.

Thanks for raising these points and please read the entire thread when you have time as there are impressive reports here from people using Inclined therapy.

Andrew

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Science is continually evolving. Nothing is set in stone. Question everything and everyone. Always consider vested interests as a reason for miss-direction. But most of all explore and find answers that you are comfortable with

A nurse told me that many stroke victims are found on the toilet, she put it down to the onset of a stroke giving an urge to defecate.

Elderly people "do an Elvis" because straining on the toilet is like the Valsalva maneuver which causes their weak heart to stop, (so it's typically heart failure not stroke when people die on the crapper).

Science is continually evolving. Nothing is set in stone. Question everything and everyone. Always consider vested interests as a reason for miss-direction. But most of all explore and find answers that you are comfortable with

The study discussed in the BBC article is summarized here: newbielink:http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11903123 [nonactive]

Read it closely and you'll see that it doesn't compare squatting to sitting for defaecation. So, the conclusion that sitting is less of a stroke risk is not justified. None of the subjects used the sitting position.

It is well known that defaecation itself causes a spike in blood pressure. Every year thousands of people get strokes and heart attacks straining on western toilets. It is also well known that squatting is more natural and reduces straining. That's why diverticulosis is only found in western countries.

I've been waging a practically hopeless campaign to squelch the rumour that squat toilets increase stroke risk. I'm quite sure that the opposite is true.

Hi jpi, is that for Jonathan Isbit ? I also believe that squatting reduces strain. There's likely a higher risk for people who are overweight, have atrophied leg muscles and then also people with long legs as these three categories are going to have a hard time staying balanced in the squat position. The incline on that nature's platform is great but I think that the incline should just be for beginners and the goal should be to eventually be able to squat on a flat surface. Personally I have found that the best elimination can only occur on a flat surface. That squatting pressure from flat squatting is essential because just as sitting sort of works then squatting on an incline only works better than sitting but the ideal is on a flat surface where the effort to stay balanced presses the thighs on stomach and promotes the natural peristalsis which is somewhat lost with the incline though incline is better than sitting. For people who have that risk of high blood pressure and stroke risk I think the ideal way to transition to Full squatting can begin by starting on the toes as in this image,

and then move on to perhaps squatting on an incline as the persons legs get stronger and then full squatting. You have to realize that when you are eliminating better you are detoxing better and this only improves your blood pressure as your kidney function improves. Hopefully this discussion is not diverting the thread too much, maybe it might need its own thread.

I've been waging a practically hopeless campaign to squelch the rumour that squat toilets increase stroke risk. I'm quite sure that the opposite is true.

Squating makes more sense as a means of reducing the compression on vessels which would inevitably cause blood to back up rather than circulating. That said, in the squat position the muscles would be contracted to support the weight of the body and this could indeed cause the vessels to be compressed by the tensed muscles. So not sure now which would be the best method.

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Yes, aswell as the vein improvement, i have also almost eradicated my knee pain issue that i have since i was 3 years old.(I have been up to 6 weeks without a attack, and i used to have this 3 times a week.....) []

That is great because the pain was horrible, when i had a attack. But the doctors could not explain this even though i had a tendent reduction when i was younger.

The only negative point, is a spider vein ankle flare on my left leg. This has not happened on the right as the pressure is not as near with the vv being higher up.

Thank's for your post regarding Alun's improvements in varicose veins. One would think that here among surgeons, scientists, doctors and nurses there would be great interest in these obvious developments. One begins to imagine that there may be considerable vested interests in trying to discredit this important discovery in circulation especially when reading the red text warning which I have only ever seen on my posts.

This is after all a science forum so one would expect that there are many out there repeating this simple experiment to try to disprove me. Yet there is not?

It is not science to say we "The Naked Scientists do not endorse any of Andrew K Fletcher's Physical, Biological or Medical assertions or opinions."

These are clearly not imagined improvements and Alun is a very genuine man with very genuine vascular problems and very genuine vascular improvements.

Now the dilema for anyone reading this thread is whether to trust hundreds of thousands of people working from literature that states you need expensive surgery or to trust a man who advises people to sleep on a tilted bed and watch their veins return to normal without the need for surgery or indeed a surgeon!

You could always wear support stockings and put your legs above the heart, rather impractical IMHO and unendorsable considering it has never reversed a varicose vein.

But to see what tilting a bed can do, you may want to read carefully through the posts from people with multiple sclerosis who have avoided sleeping on flat unscientific beds:

Science is continually evolving. Nothing is set in stone. Question everything and everyone. Always consider vested interests as a reason for miss-direction. But most of all explore and find answers that you are comfortable with

Hello all, I have recently started IBT (within the last few days). I have had varicose veins developing since my late teen years which run in my family and I just happen to have had the worst case. They were never noticable in feeling (although clearly visible) until Oct last year when I started to 'feel'them. Not painful but kind of wierd. I was in the UK at the time so it may have been down to cold weather which my body hadn't really experienced for a while.

Anyway after the unsual internet research and visit to the doctor it was a toss up between a visit to a vascular surgeon who would prescribe 'tights' and offer surgery or IBT and an increase in certain flavanoids in my diet or supplements. Obviously I chose the later. Btw thankyou Andrew for at least investigating some kind of alternative to having them 'stripped' which gives me goosebumps just thinking about it. Having read numerous posts on a variety of websites i'm given great hope that my veins will become managable. At 30 years of age this is not something you expect to be worrying about!

So onto the initial report: After a few days with IBT (our bed is raised by just over 14cm at the head with two blocks in the middle of the bed for support) myself and partner have found the bed doesn't feel much different to normal. We have found it a little more difficult to get to sleep but we're having a heatwave in Australia at the moment which could also be contributing. Obviously I dont expect to see results until weeks after so i'll take pictures and report back. My partner has no health issues but was willing to try IBT just for the general health benefits. Her main concern was that the bed was stable for 'happy times'!

As a foot note I went to a local brick yard where they have a multitude of different sized bricks. The 5 blocks I am using cost around 15dollars. I have a bed which looks like this:head feet --------------------------------------------- ] [---- -------So I had to factor in the larger gap above and add 7cm for the middle blocks. I also used two old shoes to cushion the middle blocks and fill the slight gap. Hope people can understand that! I looked for instructions on what to do with a bed frame like mine but they all referred to ensemble type beds which dont have a gap in the middle like mine.

Having another person willing to take photographs in the interest of science and document the changes due to IBT is a bonus.

It's also great to know that the red text has not put you off trying it for yourself and like you say, certainly esier to test than surgery.

Google "andrew k fletcher" and ms to see where this therapy is heading.

Look forward to hearing from you again

Andrew

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Science is continually evolving. Nothing is set in stone. Question everything and everyone. Always consider vested interests as a reason for miss-direction. But most of all explore and find answers that you are comfortable with

Just a quick update here, as it's about 18 months now since I commenced IBT. I've had no further incidents of phlebitis since the one mentioned ages ago in this thread, and have not needed to request any steroid anti-inflammatory medication for the spinal flares either.

Last autumn/early winter, I was actually able to walk into a shoe shop and buy a pair of winter boots off the peg that fit both my feet and around my legs, so the oedema improvements have proven consistent and lasting. The swollen veins on the inside of my right knee where I was being troubled by regulart bouts of phlebitis are not visible anymore, either. Will manage to get some photos of those one of these days.

I have varicose veins on my right leg which gets bigger with each pregnancy. I am currently pregnant and just over 22 weeks. My varicose veins are getting worse every day.

Iam glad to have found information on IBT and am wondering if it would be advisable to start this while pregnant?

YES, sleeping flat is a poor cousin to sleeping inclined.

My niece went full term on an inclined bed, couldnt lay down flat due to discomfort and pain.

Andrew

Thanks

« Last Edit: 19/02/2010 00:17:45 by Andrew K Fletcher »

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Science is continually evolving. Nothing is set in stone. Question everything and everyone. Always consider vested interests as a reason for miss-direction. But most of all explore and find answers that you are comfortable with